Changes

| BPM = 150| versions = The Becoming<br>The Becoming (Instrumental)<br>The Becoming (''[[Still]]'')| live = [[Dissonance]] tour <br> [[Performance 2007]]<br>[[Wave Goodbye Tour]]<br>[[NIN 2014 Europe/UK Tour]]<br>[[Cold And Black And Infinite Tour]]}}'''"The Becoming"''' is made from many loops of industrial sounds, showcasing the hard sound from seventh track on the 1994 album ''[[The Downward Spiral (halo)|The Downward Spiral]].'' The main body of the song is in a 13/8 time signature before switching to a 6/8 time signature at the breakdown. It then goes back to 13/8 before ending in 6/8, leading into "[[I Do Not Want This]]."

A more semi-acoustic version (with [[Trent Reznor]] on piano, [[Danny Lohner]] on guitar, [[Jerome Dillon]] on drums, with drum machine and samples) can be found on'' [[Still]],'' with which has an accompanying performance video released at the time on www.[[nin.com]].

===MeaningAnnie===The lyrics describe In a man fighting against himself2004 interview for ''Alternative Press'', trying to avoid his "becoming," transforming him into a machine without human characteristics and feelings[[Trent Reznor]] was asked about the use of the name Annie in this song.

This is a rare example of Reznor directly referencing a name (<blockquote><p>"Oh, and "Annie") in his lyrics. Usuallywas abstractly referring to a college sweetheart/ heartbreak situation that, he uses ambiguous pronouns. This expresses at the need for attachmenttime I was writing that song, the need to interact intimately with another human despite the narrator's extreme attempts was a valid source of emotional pain to detach himself draw from the world. The song begins with industrial noises such as those from a drum machine Her real name is Andrea Mulrain, and what appears to be distorted screamsher phone number is [number deleted for privacy purposes. At the 3-minute mark it mellows into swooshy sounds with ''ahh''ing from more emotive voicesPatriot Act Ed.]"</p> <p>—Reznor [http://www. There is a final outburst of noise and screaming before fading out with the ''ahh''s againtheninhotline. This song structure is indicative of the struggle between the narrator and the noisenet/archives/articles/manager/machinedisplay_article.php?id=11]</p></blockquote>

This is the original album version. It begins in a 13/8 time signature with a manipulated piano line, then bursts into drum and sample loops of screams taken from the film ''Robot Joxx''. The drum loop pattern is also nearly identical in "[[The Way Out Is Through]]." At the 3-minute mark, it mellows into an acoustic guitar-led passage in 6/8, with machine-like loops and synthesized chorus pads sampled from Reznor's voice. There is a final outburst of noise and screaming before returning to the acoustic section, which crossfades with the opening of "[[I Do Not Want This]]." ===The Becoming (Instrumental)==='''''Running Time: 6:24''''' Released by Reznor via his [[remix.nin.com]] account, this unmastered instrumental version is extended in length, as it does not fade out the ending, rather looping the acoustic guitar riff many times until stopping.

'''''Running Time: 4:30''''' This version appears on the ''Still'' CD, which was Disc 2 of the Deluxe Edition CD of ''And All That Could Have Been'' and is currently available through NINnin.com. Simpler in its instrumentation and without the sample loops, it transitions immediately from the end of "[[The_Fragile_%28song%29#The_Fragile_.28Still.29|The Fragile]]" and ends suddenly after the final "noisy" section. Though he is absent from the credits, [[Danny Lohner]] is clearly seen performing in the video.

*[http://www.youtubevimeo.com/watch?v=eaX4Ac2-Fww 61677369 "The Becoming" (''Still'')music video]*[http://vimeo.com/5133409 "The Becoming" live from on stage at the Sasquatch Festival, 5.24.09]